Travel to a luxe estate for an immersive experience with rich wines, delectable food pairings and a mind-twisting turn of scandalous events. The beloved local getaway, Messina Hof Estate Winery, invites patrons to Murder Mystery Dinner: Horror at Homecoming on Friday, Oct. 18.
Hosted multiple times throughout the year, the Murder Mystery Dinner event at Messina Hof features a three-course meal where guests uncork a Clue-like murder mystery while sampling award-winning wines. Gina Graves, marketing manager at Messina Hof in Bryan, says the unique storytelling aspect creates a gamified theater experience where the attendees themselves participate as the actors.
“We assign scripts for the people who want to be made characters, character breakdowns, give them ideas of what they can wear,” Gina says. “It’s really fun to see everybody get engaged and involved in dressing up and participating.”
The next mystery dinner will throw participants back to their high school days with “Horror at Homecoming.” Under the Friday night lights, amidst the tension of winning the homecoming crown, a murderer runs loose. Past themes have included Trailer Park Tragedy, Murder by Midnight, Terror in Transylvania and more.
“As we’ve developed our program through the years, [this] was something that one of our founders now was really passionate about,” Gina says. “She’s very passionate about all of our culinary-driven programs.”
In preparation for the dinner party, participants are given scripts and a theme to dress. Jessica Reissig, general manager at the Messina Hof in Bryan, says the fun, feel-good atmosphere allows attendees to get the most out of the experience.
“I think it’s a fun way to approach wine, especially for people who don’t try a lot of different wines and are not super familiar with it,” Jessica says. “They are in a very fun and relaxed environment here.”
The exquisite wine culture is introduced to guests with food pairings prepared by local culinary artists. The featured three-course meal is uniquely tailored to the corresponding theme of the night’s mystery setting. From pirates to train conductors, Murder Mystery Dinners at Messina Hof are designed to combine flavor and entertainment for the full winery experience.
“I really enjoy the culinary and wine pairing aspect,” Jessica says. “It’s something that I’m really passionate about. I love being able to share that with people. It’s fun to highlight how you can incorporate wine into dishes or how you can match wine with food.”
With an extensive library of wines, Messina Hof showcases its vintages by giving guests a special opportunity to experience aromatic aged wine.
“We want to make sure that we’re highlighting our really excellent vintages for people,” Jessica says. “If there is something that is really special that we want guests to be able to try, we’ll make sure that we incorporate that into the food and wine pairing that we’re doing.”
To learn more about the next event and purchase tickets, visit Messina Hof’s website at messinahof.com.
